Secular Humanist Reflective Essay Sample

… order in the society. In his essay, Locke mentions that a social contract must be agreed upon by the people and the Government, and limitations must also be put upon these agents (the Government) when abuses become prevalent and detrimental to the welfare of the people. Although Locke’s idea on the social contract and governance is an idea similar to Rousseau’s revolutionary concept on the Social Contract, Locke’s essay focused more on law and governance. For Locke, power is only gained through the people, law is established by the ‘general consent’ of the majority, and power is utilized through the consent and empowerment of the people, and exercised by the agents, or the appointed Government of the people. Locke’s essay and political philosophy is reflective of the democratic government that our society experience today, and his ideas on law and governance is a plausible and a reasonable thought. If there is one weakness that Locke’s philosophy has, it is probably his overly-dependence on the will and power of the majority, although he mentions that the power of the people must be exercised moderately. In effect, Locke effectively states his philosophy about how law and …